Purchase Solution

Directed Analysis

Not what you're looking for?

Ask Custom Question

Directed Methods Analysis of Battilana, J., & Casciaro, T. (2012). Change agents, networks and institutions: A contingency theory of organizational change. Academy of Management Journal, 55, 381-398.

Read the assigned article (above) and answer the following questions. Although you certainly may use additional text-based sources to assist you, the information that you need to be able to answer these questions can be obtained from your course readings (Critical Thinking, 2nd edition, by Alec Fisher) and your own critical thinking skills.

Your answers must be in your own words. "Cutting and pasting" material from the article will be considered non-responsive and result in no credit for that answer. Please number each response.

In your answer, if you refer to any text from the assigned article directly, please be sure to reference it appropriately.

1. Was this article published in a recognized scholarly journal? And what is your evidence for or against?

2. What is the purpose of the article? Do the authors achieve their purpose? Provide evidence for your judgment.

3. Is there a gap in the field of literature that is addressed by this study? If so, what is that gap? How does this study address the gap?

4. Is the research method (study design) appropriate for answering the authors' research question? Provide evidence for your judgment.

5. In your own words, why do the authors conduct the study using both quantitative and qualitative methods? Provide an example of one qualitative data collection method and one quantitative data collection method the authors used in the study. Do you think the use of both methods supported the findings of the study? Why or why not?

6. In what way do the quantitative measures used in this study answer the proposed research question?

7. What is the population of interest in the combined studies? Do you think the sample used is a good representation of that population? Why or why not?

8. Was the selection of cases based on external, objective and validated criteria? Why?

9. Are objective and validated measurement methods used to measure the outcome in this study? If not, was the outcome assessed by someone who was unaware of the group assignment (i.e. was the assessor blinded)?

10. Could there be confounding factors in the findings of this study that haven't been accounted for by the authors? If so, what are those factors?

11. Table 2 presents the correlation matrix for the variables used to assess change agents in this study.

(a) List all of the statistically significant correlations.
(b) Choose one of the statistically significant outcomes and describe in your own words what this outcome means in relation to the study.

12. Tables 3 and 4 present five multiple regression models intended to test how well certain variables predict degree of change divergence (Table 3) and degree of change adoption (Table 4).

(a) What is the difference between Model 3, Model 4, and Model 5?
(b) Why is it necessary to run three models?
(c) What outcome does Model 4 predict? How do you know this?

13. Give two specific examples of how the researchers used qualitative data to illustrate the quantitative data. How does the authors' use of these examples support the research findings? [3 points]

14. In this study, the researchers administered a telephone survey to measure the level of change adoption.

a. At what level of measurement were the scale items measured?
b. What would a "4" on the item "How far did you progress toward completing the change project" mean?
c. What would a "4" on the item "In my view, the change was not adopted in the organization" mean?
d. Give one example of how the researchers validated their measurements of change adoption.

15. Having slowly and carefully read the Method and Results section of this article, thoughtfully and cogently explain the role of the data that the authors collected and analyzed in helping them advance an argument about change agents and their influence on initiation and adoption of change in organizations.

Attachments
Purchase this Solution

Solution Summary

The response provides you a structured explanation of an article that describes Directed Methods Analysis . It also gives you the relevant references.

Solution Preview

1. This article was published in a recognized scholarly journal. The evidence is that the article was published in the "Academy of Management Journal" on April 1, 2009, Vol. 55 no. 2 on pages 381 - 398. AMJ is a recognized scholarly journal.
2. The purpose of the authors is to show that a low level of structural closure in a change agent's network aids the initiation and adoption of changes that diverge from institutional status quo. This purpose is achieved by the authors. The evidence is that both quantitative data and qualitative data collected support this contention. The results of the study show that the effects of structural holes on changes agent's ability to persuade organizational constituencies to adopt a change are strictly contingent on the change's degree of divergence from the institutional status quo.
3. The gap is that studies have researched the effect of network closure on actors' capability to implement new ideas, but have got contradictory results. Some studies show high levels and other show low levels of network closure to encourage change adoption. This study addresses the gap by developing a contingency theory of role of network closure for beginning and acceptance of organizational change.
4. The study design is appropriate for the author's research questions. Longitudinal survey data is appropriate because it captures the change in responses over a period of time. Further, it provides data that can be statistically analyzed. This data is supplemented with eight in depth case studies. The case study method provides a descriptive and explanatory analysis of events. Organizational change initiatives are studied. The author's research question is that information and control benefits of structural holes take different forms in change initiation when compared to change adoption, and these benefits are dependent on the degree to which the change diverges from institutional status quo in the organization's field of activity. The design of the study is appropriate for the question of the researchers.
5. The authors conduct the study using both quantitative and qualitative methods so that the qualitative methods verify the consistency of the responses of the change agents with information provided by other organization members. The use of qualitative methods in this manner provides a validation of the ...

Solution provided by:
Education
  • BSc , University of Calcutta
  • MBA, Eastern Institute for Integrated Learning in Management
Recent Feedback
  • "I read your comments, and thank you for this feedback. Do I need to find other studies that applied this methodology Ive used? That's where I'm stuck at."
  • "Thank you kindly sir. "
  • "Excellent and well explained. --Thank you kindly. "
  • "Awesome notes. I appreciate you."
  • "I have the follow-up project and I will assign that to you very soon. "
Purchase this Solution


Free BrainMass Quizzes
SWOT

This quiz will test your understanding of the SWOT analysis, including terms, concepts, uses, advantages, and process.

Employee Orientation

Test your knowledge of employee orientation with this fun and informative quiz. This quiz is meant for beginner and advanced students as well as professionals already working in the HR field.

IPOs

This Quiz is compiled of questions that pertain to IPOs (Initial Public Offerings)

Marketing Management Philosophies Quiz

A test on how well a student understands the basic assumptions of marketers on buyers that will form a basis of their marketing strategies.

Team Development Strategies

This quiz will assess your knowledge of team-building processes, learning styles, and leadership methods. Team development is essential to creating and maintaining high performing teams.